UK Commits to Time-Bound Talks on Slavery Apology; Formal Apology Could Come Within a Year
ST. JOHN'S, Antigua and Barbuda — The United Kingdom has signed up to "structured, time-bound, inclusive and good-faith" talks addressing the "historical harms" of the transatlantic slave trade. The formal conclusions marking the end of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, published on November 5, state that leaders "welcome the agreement of the Government of the United Kingdom to engage in a structured, time-bound, inclusive and good-faith dialogue with affected parties addressing the transatlantic trafficking of enslaved Africans and its historical harms."
Prime Minister Andy Burnham had already opened the door to a formal apology on behalf of the UK for its role in the slave trade, while ruling out the prospect of reparations. Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said the talks were likely to conclude in around a year; asked whether the government might reach the point of a formal apology by the time it hosts the G20 leaders' summit in Manchester next November, he told BBC Newscast: "Broadly speaking, yes." Miliband also said a formal apology would not cost taxpayers "a penny more" and would not lead to financial compensation.
King Charles III had earlier told the Commonwealth summit the slave trade left him with "fear and deep sorrow," but offered no apology and no commitment on reparations. Philip J. Pierre, the chair of the Caribbean Community and prime minister of Saint Lucia, welcomed Britain's willingness to discuss a formal apology and enter structured dialogue.
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Source: Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：英国外交大臣埃德·米利班德官方肖像。英国议会，CC BY 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Official portrait of UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband. UK Parliament, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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